Advantages

Disadvantages

A great product I have used for years and will for years to come

Like anyone, I like my home smelling nice and probably spend a small fortune on products that are designed for this job. I have a bit of a problem with the plug in ones. I'm not really sure why since the majority of them do a very good job. I think my mums rather irrational fear over what they're emitting into the air we breathe has probably rubbed off on me a little.

Anyway, for that reason I rely a lot on products designed for oil burners and one product in particular that I come back to over and over again are these simmering granules from Ancient Wisdom.

What Are Simmering Granules?~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Simmering granules are basically coloured salt granules that have been infused with essential oils. When these grains are heated by a tea light under the oil burner they release their scent around the room.

As described above they can be heated in an oil burner to really release their scent but they also smell quite strongly in themselves so just keeping a bowl of them in your room will allow you to freshen up your home. Apparently, they can also reduce the smell of ashtrays when used to line the bottom although I have never tried this so can't say if it works.

My Experience~~~~~~~~~

The packaging for these is really quite basic, they come in a see-through plastic pouch allowing you to see the bright pink granules inside. This pouch has a flap at the top which just wraps around the pouch and sticks back down. This makes it very easy to open and close and I have never had a problem with it losing it's stickiness.

The granules themselves are bright pink and have a relatively complex rotation system that they go through! I put about a third of the pack into a small bowl by the front door so they can be smelt by anyone coming in. From that bowl I then pour a few into an oil burner to burn and then, when the bowl is empty I refill it from the pack.

The bowl by the front door is definitely noticeable as you walk by it but isn't really strong enough to scent the room. It just provides that bit extra to anyone who walks by it. As for the smell itself, you can tell that it's cherry but it's more delicate then I usually think of when I think cherry. It's quite a soft, overall fruity fragrance.

However it's when you light these in an oil burner that they really come into their own. The directions say to put a couple of teaspoons in but i have never bothered measuring i just shake enough in to give the burner a thin layer on the bottom of the bowl. As with most products like this it takes a little while for the scent to become noticeable as the tea light needs to heat up the burner. However within a few minutes I begin to get wafts of the fragrance across the room and within 5-10 minutes depending on the strength of the tea light the smell has completely filled the room. It's not strong but not too weak either. Just gives the whole room a delicate fragrance. This lasts for as long as the tea light lasts and even after the tea light has either gone out or been put out the smell lingers for around two more hours. The beads still have some use left in them after burning through one tea light. It is however, likely that those at the very bottom have burnt out so I just stir them around a bit with my finger and burn them again after this. This allows for a good 5-6 hours of extra burn time.

After use they are easy to dispose of. I simply shake the grains into the bin. I often find that a few have stuck to the burner but these also easily remove if they are simply rubbed off. They leave no marks and even after prolonged use the bright colours of the grains don't stain the burner.

Each pack contains 200g of granules which easily lasts me 2-3 months of daily use making them excellent value for money.

Warnings~~~~~~

As with any oil burner product I would be careful to place it on a heat resistant mat, keep it away from drafts and out the reach of children. It should also be supervised whilst in use as the tea light is an open flame.

That said, I do consider these to be safer then oils or wax products as the granules themselves don't get hot at all and therefore don't pose a risk.

Price, Availability And Suitability~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I buy mine from a Market close to me (St. Albans for those of you who live close enough) for £1.29 a pack.

They are available online from several stores, Amazon sell several different scents - although not this one I'm afraid to say. If you do take a liking to these granules you can buy in bulk direct from Ancient Wisdom (www.ancientwisdom.biz) taking the price down to 55p per pack.

Cherry Grove is one of 64 scents available from Ancient Wisdom. Along with other fruity scents they also encompass spicy, woody and sweet scents so there is likely to be something for everyone.

I have used various scents from this range and found them all to work just as well as this one. Therefore I have no problem recommending these and giving them the full 5 out of 5.